Expertgps Vs. Nat'l Geographic?

[+wmfisherman]

Hey guys,

 

I apologize if this discussion has already been had, but I've seen posts where people were singing the praises of ExpertGPS (or GSAK(?)), or some other GPS-based mapping software. I've seen others say you can't beat the National Geographic software. I've used Delorme's 3-D Topo software before.

 

I was wondering what most people use for recreational use. What I would mostly be using software for is printing out quad maps prior to geocaching, and maybe mapping hunting areas for myself and friends.

 

The only real difference that I see so far is that National Geographic (or Delorme) would be better if I used a laptop alot while traveling, and wanted to see my location in realtime (since its maps are on CD's), while maybe the ExpertGPS (or GSAK) software would be better for home use since I could get topo maps AND aerial photos of my places of interest. Am I missing something, or is that really it?

 

Thanks for any input!

[+Renegade Knight]

ExpertGPS, It has arial photo's plus the topo maps. It downloads the maps and photos from the intent as needed.

 

National Geographic Topo, the topo maps are the same as ExpertGPS but since they use a difference source (which is on CD's) the map quality is much higher for print outs etc. There are no arial photo's included as part of the program.

 

I havce not looked at ExpertGPS in a year so there may be improvements that I have not allowed for.

[peter]

I use USAPhotoMaps rather than ExpertGPS, but AKAIK the source of the data is the same Terraserver site. Although generally very good, there are some glitches in the data. One example is the region around Half Dome in Yosemite park where neither the photos nor the USGS map images are properly aligned (at least they weren't the last time I looked). Fixing these little errors doesn't seem to be a priority at Terraserver.

 

And of course any program that uses this data source is dependent on the data remaining available. I doubt if any have contractual arrangements assuring the continued free access to the database.

[+c88m]

I have both NG and Delorme and NG is far superior for quaility and user friendly . Anybody want my Delorme ?

[+MAG315]

I understand that there is a MAJOR upgrade for ExpertGPS coming sometime later this year so you might want to hold off before you choose one over the other.

[+wmfisherman]

National Geographic Topo, the topo maps are the same as ExpertGPS but since they use a difference source (which is on CD's) the map quality is much higher for print outs etc.  There are no arial photo's included as part of the program.

So, it sounds like my decision needs to be based on whether I a) want to print high-quality topo maps (National Geographic) or want to print lower-quality topo AND photo maps (ExpertGPS).

 

Did I get that right?

 

Do both softwares have equivalent functions (viewing routes/tracks overlaid on the contour maps, etc?)

 

Thanks for all of your input.

[+Poindexter]

You can download all the Mississippi topo's you want for free from this link. These are high resolution USGS DRG's in .sid format. You can get a free browser plug-in at this link to view them directly in your web browser. You might also want to check out Oziexplorer for working with these maps and your cache waypoints.

[+Renegade Knight]

National Geographic Topo, the topo maps are the same as ExpertGPS but since they use a difference source (which is on CD's) the map quality is much higher for print outs etc.  There are no arial photo's included as part of the program.

So, it sounds like my decision needs to be based on whether I a) want to print high-quality topo maps (National Geographic) or want to print lower-quality topo AND photo maps (ExpertGPS).

 

Did I get that right?

 

Do both softwares have equivalent functions (viewing routes/tracks overlaid on the contour maps, etc?)

 

Thanks for all of your input.

Expert GPS also costs less and works everwhere. For the most part you will end up buying Topo one state at a time.

[+Alan2]

One other thing. NG Topo can be loaded into your Pocket PC using their Pocket Topo program another 25.00 over the state map cost. So you can either print out a hard copy or have the map in your PPC. If you conect your GPS you can see your location on the topo map in your PPC.

 

Don't know if Expert or any other topo programs do this. Anyone know?

Edited January 17, 2005 by Alan2

[+Poindexter]

One other thing.  NG Topo can be loaded into your Pocket PC using their Pocket Topo program another 25.00 over the state map cost.  So you can either print out a hard copy or have the map in your PPC.  If you conect your GPS you can see your location on the topo map in your PPC.

 

Don't know if Expert or any other topo programs do this.  Anyone know?

Yes, I use Oziexplorer CE for this. You can use USGS DRG topo's with this as well as any other maps that you want. The DRG's are freely available for many states and available from the GISDATADEPOT for around 50 cents each. There's a comparison web page here showing the difference between MapTech and NG Topo on a pocket pc. Here's a screenshot of my pocket pc running Oziexplorer with a USGS topo.

 

Edited January 17, 2005 by Poindexter

[+Renegade Knight]

One other thing. NG Topo can be loaded into your Pocket PC using their Pocket Topo program another 25.00 over the state map cost. So you can either print out a hard copy or have the map in your PPC. If you conect your GPS you can see your location on the topo map in your PPC.

 

Don't know if Expert or any other topo programs do this. Anyone know?

MapTech topo has a Pocket PC version. I don't know if they handle the waypoint issue any better than NG.

[+fizzymagic]

Several points that have not been made:

• NG is very, very, very expensive if you are interested in more than just a single limited region.
  
• ExpertGPS does an excellent job with scanned or downloaded maps; it is quite nice to use with maps published by parks.
  
• ExpertGPS has many features that are extremely useful for geocaching. It can read and write GPX files. It allows selection of waypoints in areas and along routes quite easily.
  
• ExpertGPS interacts with your GPS much better than NG, in my opinon.
  
• ExpertGPS does not understand elevation data; while NG can give you a profile of the terrain for your hike, ExpertGPS cannot.
  
• ExpertGPS can only display downloaded topo maps at certain fixed resolutions; it does not interpolate between resolutions. That can be frustrating when you want to print out a map of a certain area.
  

If I had an infinite supply of money, I would have both. Instead, I use ExpertGPS.

[+Alan2]

WHile it's true that most of the NG maps are on a state by state basis, I fortunately live in NY. The NG "state" series here covers 8 northeast and New England states for the $100 in a 10 CD disk set. (ME, NH, VT, CT, MA, NY, NJ, RI)

 

One clarification to my previous post. The $25.00 NG Pocket PC program is a one-time charge that covers all 50 states. You don't have to buy it with each state.

[+Alan2]

Poindexter: Does Ozi show your location in the PPC?

[+Poindexter]

Poindexter: Does Ozi show your location in the PPC?

Absolutely. This program has a long list of features. My pocket pc has bluetooth so I use an i.Trek bluetooth GPS receiver so I'm totally wireless. I also use Mapopolis on the PPC which is far superior to Microsoft pocket streets. GSAK will automatically export the GPX files to oziexplorer waypoint files for the PPC. I think I have the ultimate setup here.

[+dino_hunters]

The biggies for me were:

 

NG topo = $100/state or $5000 for whole USA

Expertgps = $60 for Entire USA

Expertgps has air photos

Expertgps has MUCH MUCH better GPS integration.

 

BTW, next spring there is supposed to be a BIG update to Expertgps (Free). It will allow for Elevation Profiles and much much more. There is also supposed to be a PPC version sometime too.

 

Also, with expertgps, you can scan in any maps, as with Ozi.

 

Download the demos and see what you like. After my Expertgps demo expired, I HAD to buy it. NOthing else comes close to working well with a gps.

 

jjb